- Just like "ReadyBoost", the virtual memory feature in Windows 7 (and earlier versions) allows the operating system to use disk space when it runs out of RAM. This data is stored in a file called pagefile.sys on the
C:\drive (or from whichever drive you configured Windows to run).
Tip: the two other most common largest single files on a main drive will be
VHDvirtual hard disk files for VirtualPC (like Windows XP Mode) andhiberfile.sys, used when your PC hibernates. - With plenty of memory (4+ Gb of RAM for Windows 7), but running out of disk space (easily done with increasingly common 128Gb/180Gb solid state drives), you can disable or reduce virtual memory to regain that space;
pagefile.sysis the size of RAM detected by the OS, by default. - Right-click on Computer and choose Properties: click Advanced System Settings on the left.
- Select the Advanced tab if needed, and click on the "Settings" button under Performance.
- Also select the "Advanced" tab on that new dialog, and click "Change" under Virtual Memory:
- Uncheck "Automatically manage paging file size for all drives": if you are critically running out of space, select "No paging file", but picking a custom size is recommended. If you disable virtual memory (No Paging) or set its initial size to zero, Windows will give you a "If you disable the paging file or set the initial size to less than 400 megabytes and a system error occurs, Windows might not record details that could help identify the problem. Do you want to continue?" warning message. The best is to keep at least what Microsoft requires in that message.
Tip: the minimum size should be at least
5%of detected RAM (example: 400Mb for 8Gb of RAM). - Click on the "Set" button (Windows will *not* save your change otherwise).
- Click OK, and you'll get a "The changes you have made require [that] you restart your computer before they can take effect" message. Click OK two more times, and choose to "Restart Now" or "Restart Later". Check the available disk space, save all changes, exit all applications, and reboot.
- Once your computer has restarted, look at the free hard space on your drive to see if pagefile.sys was shrunken / deleted: if it was, congrats - you just regained a few gigabytes of storage!
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